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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28432293">Never Let Go</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/tjlyricz/pseuds/tjlyricz'>tjlyricz</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Tangled (2010)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>ALL THE FLUFF, Adventure, Did I mention fluff?, F/M, Fight Scene, Fluff, Humor, Kidnapping, Non-Consensual Kissing, POV First Person, Post-Canon, Rapunzel POV, Swordfighting, Threats of Rape/Non-Con, Wedding, cute rapunzel and eugene, fighting but no super gross or graphic, frying pan, rapunzel being cute, they're adorable</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 20:08:08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>6,826</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28432293</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/tjlyricz/pseuds/tjlyricz</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>My eyes analyzed his face. He was afraid…no…he was terrified. I remembered that face when Gothel tried to take me away from him. “Something’s wrong, isn’t there?” I may have been naïve when it came to certain things, but with Eugene, there was nothing I didn’t know…or so I thought.</p>
<p>(Their wedding is just around the bend. Rapunzel couldn’t be happier. But something is off. There’s something Eugene isn’t telling her. After much pestering, Eugene tells Rapunzel that the Stabbington Brothers have another brother, one who wants nothing more than to get revenge on the infamous Flynn Rider.)</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Eugene Fitzherbert | Flynn Rider/Rapunzel</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>9</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Never Let Go</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This was one of my first Tangled fics I wrote wayyyyyy back in the day (like 2013 lol). Finally decided to brush the dust off and post it. Rated teens and up because of the fight scene and there are two non-consensual kissing moments when Rapunzel is kidnapped (spoiler there but felt like I should let it be known upfront)</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>I had been engaged to Eugene for three months. Our wedding was coming up soon. It was so exciting. Ever since the day I say yes, my heart couldn’t help getting more and more filled with joy. I adored Eugene and he adored me. Flynn Rider was a person of the past, and Eugene was here to stay.</p>
<p>I hadn’t seen him all morning, looking around the different facets of the castle I now call home. When I finally found him, Eugene sat on a bench propped in the grand hall. He was bouncing his leg up and down, agitated. I walked over to him. He leaned his head against the wall. A stream of air escaped between his lips in a sigh.</p>
<p>            I took a seat next to him, unnoticed. “Is something wrong?” I asked, tucking my hair behind my ear.</p>
<p>            Eugene jumped a little, startled. He turned to me. His face was as white as the moon. Little beads of sweat had collected around his brow. I could tell he forced a smile. “I’m sorry, Blondie. What did you say?” He still called me that despite my new haircut. It had become a habit for him, and to be honest, I liked it when he called me by that name. A connection had been made the first time he called me Blondie, and I didn’t want that connection to be broken.</p>
<p>            My eyes analyzed his face. He was afraid…no…he was terrified. I remembered that face when Gothel tried to take me away from him. “Something’s wrong, isn’t there?” I may have been naïve when it came to certain things, but with Eugene, there was nothing I didn’t know…or so I thought.</p>
<p>            The young man sighed as he ran his fingers through his shuffled hair. The smile he had on before had dimmed to a frown. Then he looked back up at me. His warm brown eyes sunk deep into mine. “Rapunzel…” He took my small hands in his, caressing my fingers with his thumb. “I...have something that I never told you...”</p>
<p>            I kept staring at him, waiting for him to finish his thought.</p>
<p>            “But it was because I didn’t think it was important…but then I heard one of the guards talking and…” he swallowed. “Well, I have to tell you now.” Eugene took a bundle of air through his mouth and released it through his nose. “The Stabbington Brothers have an older brother!” He blurted, contorting his face into disgust.</p>
<p>            I just kept staring. Why was that so horrible? “Eugene…I don’t understand why that’s so bad?”</p>
<p>            The love of my life put on that face he always did when I didn’t see something clearly at first. I think he found me comical when it came to being so childlike. “The other brother is going to come after me…since—”</p>
<p>            I cut him off. “Since you think <em>you’re</em> the reason those men are in prison.” I giggled at this preposterous idea. “You’re not the reason.” I stated.</p>
<p>            Eugene raised his eyebrows, unconvinced. “Oh? Then what is?”</p>
<p>            I shrugged. “Fate…destiny…” I threw out some suggestions.</p>
<p>            “A horse?” He finished in a snort.</p>
<p>            I smiled and gripped onto his hands. “I promise that nothing will go wrong.”</p>
<p>            Eugene’s grasp on me lessened. “Don’t make a promise you can’t keep, Blondie.”</p>
<p>            I shook my head at his silly remark and tightened my grip. “But don’t you remember? When I make a promise, I never break it.” I leaned into him, resting my head on his shoulder.</p>
<p>            I could feel his body tense under me. My words weren’t as comforting as I had hoped. I nuzzled my head in his arms. “What did the guards say?”</p>
<p>            He took another breath. “Marcus—that’s his name—was last seen coming this way to get revenge on the thief, Flynn Rider.”</p>
<p>            I took one of my hands away from him as I sat up straight. With that hand, I stroked his cheek. I pulled my eyebrows together and smirked. “Then he’s going to come a long way for nothing because the last time I checked, the only person I see now is a caring, loving, wholesome Eugene Fitzherbert.”</p>
<p>            A genuine chuckled managed to slip out of Eugene. He took his free hand and brushed runaway hairs from my face as a late summer breeze tumbled its way through the hall. “I love you, Rapunzel.” Right as he was leaning in to kiss me, Pascal ran up my dress, over my shoulder, up my arm, and stuck his tongue, yet again, in Eugene’s ear. Eugene jumped, not expecting that wet sensation. “How many times have I told you to stop that?” He growled, irritated.</p>
<p>            I laughed lightly, grabbing Pascal and placing him down beside us. “Oh, Eugene, you know he’s just playing around.”</p>
<p>            My love rolled his eyes after wiping his ear with his shoulder. “Well, he couldn’t have picked a better time.”</p>
<p>            We got off the bench holding hands as we walked to the dining hall for dinner. As we walked, I wrapped my arm around Eugene’s. His body had become even more tensed. He was still worried, still terrified. <em>Well,</em> I thought, <em>I’m going to do whatever it takes to keep him safe.</em></p>
<p>……………</p>
<p> </p>
<p>            After dinner, Eugene went for a stroll around the castle’s garden, trying to clear his head. When I was sure he was out of ear shot, I took my parents aside. “Mother, Father, I have a favor to ask of you.” I cleared my throat. “I know that I have only known you for a while now, but it would mean so much to me if you did as I asked.”</p>
<p>            The king chuckled, smiling broadly. “Anything you ask will be done, Princess Rapunzel.”</p>
<p>            I still wasn’t used to being called a princess. Sure, it had been a couple of years now, but I still couldn’t help but smile when I heard my new title.</p>
<p>            The queen grinned sweetly. “What is it that you want, dear?”</p>
<p>            “Well, tonight at dinner, Eugene told us about how there’s a man out there seeking revenge on him…I keep telling him everything is going to be okay, but he won’t believe me. That is why I would like to ask for permission to have guards around him at <em>all</em> times until this man is put in prison.” I said, backing up my request with confidence.</p>
<p>            My father put his hand on the queen’s shoulder. “I think it is an excellent idea, Rapunzel.”</p>
<p>            My mother cocked an eyebrow to her husband’s quick response. It was up to my mother to make the decision. Everything my parents did was together. There couldn’t be a disagreement. After an agonizing three seconds of hesitation, my mother rolled her eyes and wrapped her arms around me. “We will have only the best guards protecting him. How does that sound?”</p>
<p>            I hugged her, so happy that she had warmed up to the love of my life. “It sounds wonderful!”</p>
<p>I let her go and raced to Eugene. He was sitting on a rock in the corner of the garden. The stars were coming out, showing their faces to everyone below. The sky still had light from the sun painted across it, making there appear to be rainbow highlights in Eugene’s hair. “Eugene?” I beckoned.</p>
<p>He spun around too fast and fell off the rock, falling hard on his back. “Ouch,” he muttered, rubbing his tender back as he stood up. “Yes, Blondie?”</p>
<p>I heard footsteps coming from behind me. A smile stretched across my lips. “I have a surprise for you!”</p>
<p>Eugene smiled. “And what would that be?”</p>
<p>I embraced him and then turned to see the five guards that were selected to keep my Eugene safe. “These guards are going to protect you until that Marcus is caught.”</p>
<p>At first Eugene cringed at the idea, but then his face expressed amusement when he realized that the Captain of the Guard was one of the men that would be protecting him. “Oh, <em>this</em> is going to be <em>great</em>.” He showed off his smile to the guard.</p>
<p>The Captain grumbled and rolled his eyes. “Don’t think for a second that I’m going to enjoy this, Rider.”</p>
<p>“His name is Eugene Fitzherbert,” I reminded, my voice a bit bitter. It annoyed me so much when people still saw him as a thief. He wasn’t! He was no longer the thief that everyone perceived him to be. He changed. He was a new man, a man that loves me and would lay his life on the line…again for me if it came down to it. Would Flynn Rider do that? No, he would only look after himself, only look out for his reflection. Flynn Rider was <em>gone</em>. Eugene Fitzherbert was here to stay.</p>
<p>The Captain turned to me and nodded, clearing his throat. He had heard the irritation in my voice. “My apologies, Princess,” he stood up straighter as did the other guards.</p>
<p>“Do you feel better now, Eugene?” I asked, my big eyes searching for the reaction I was looking for.</p>
<p>Eugene smiled thoughtfully. I’m sure he found this all laughable, but I didn’t care. I wanted him to feel safe. “Yes, I do, although, I do have a suggestion,” he walked over to the Captain and rested his elbow on the man’s shoulder, basking in the fact that the guard could not smack him as he would have before. “I think we should have <em>this</em> man,” Eugene gestured to the guard, “on patrol to search for Marcus. I mean, he <em>did</em> capture the Stabbington Brothers single handedly.”</p>
<p>The Captain tried to hold back a smile, but you could see a grin tugging at the end of his lips. “It was not single handedly, Rid—I mean <em>Sir</em>.”</p>
<p>Eugene took his arm off of the guard, pleased with himself.</p>
<p>I laughed. “Okay,” I said. “Would you please be a part of the search for Marcus?”</p>
<p>The man naturally accepted. “Of course, Princess, I shall do my best to capture this man.” He bowed and glanced at Eugene before he left. I caught my husband-to-be grinning at the Captain. The man rolled his eyes and nodded his gratitude to his ex-criminal. When he left, only four guards remained.</p>
<p>I wrinkled my forehead, not sure if four was enough. “Will you be okay with four?” I asked Eugene.</p>
<p>He smiled beautifully and snaked his arm around my waist, pulling me into his chest. “Four is just fine.” Then he leaned in again, getting ready to kiss me, not caring that the guards would see…when Pascal introduced his tongue to Eugene’s ear for the fiftieth time. Eugene jumped and growled. I couldn’t help but laugh. He stuck his pinky in his ear, trying to get the slim out. “Someday, that little <em>frog</em> is going to go too far!”</p>
<p>“He’s a chameleon,” I reminded.</p>
<p>Eugene chuckled scornfully as the moon hung in the air, making it appear that he was wearing a halo. He sighed and said, “I need to get some rest, Rapunzel.” He dismissed my correction. “Tomorrow I’m going for an early ride with Max, I promised.”</p>
<p>I laid my head on his chest, tracing the stitches on his vest. “It’s so nice seeing the two of you getting along.” I nuzzled my body into his. “Promise me you’ll take the guards with you no matter where you go?”</p>
<p>Eugene didn’t answer right away. It was the pride of Flynn Rider that held him back. He didn’t think he needed protection, that he could save himself if the time came down to it. But he knew that this would make me happy. In the end he said, “I promise.”</p>
<p>I removed my face from his chest and looked into his eyes. “I love you.”</p>
<p>He kissed my hair, grinning sweetly. “I love you more.”</p>
<p>I caressed his neck with my fingers, getting one of them moving up to his head, lost in his mass of gorgeous hair. “I love you most.”</p>
<p>With our arms wrapped around each other, we walked back into the castle. Eugene escorted me to my room. I invited him in, but he said no. “I couldn’t,” he claimed.</p>
<p>“Yes you can,” I smiled, putting on big puppy-dog eyes.</p>
<p>Eugene forced a grin. “I’ll take a rain check.”</p>
<p>I looked back into his eyes. He was <em>still</em> terrified. No, he was <em>more</em> terrified than before! Confused, I asked him what was wrong. Once again, he stated nothing, but I knew better. “Come on, Eugene,” I whined. “You can tell me anything.”</p>
<p>The young man shook his head. “It’s really nothing worth mentioning.”</p>
<p>“Oh yes, it is,” I concluded. I took a seat at the foot of my bed and patted the area next to it, indicating that that was his spot.</p>
<p>Eugene sighed and checked the hall. Just as promised, four guards were waiting. His face expressed annoyance. I knew it was because of the guards, but I wanted him to be safe. I didn’t care that he was used to being on his own. He was my everything. I couldn’t bear the thought of letting him go. I lost him once and almost didn’t get him back. I wasn’t going to allow that to happen again. He closed the door behind him as he took a seat next to me.  He took my hand in his, holding it as if it was a baby bird.</p>
<p>“What’s wrong?” I asked again. It was killing me inside to see him this way.</p>
<p>Eugene knew me better now. He knew that there was no way that I wasn’t going to stop asking until I got an answer. He took a shaky breath, bracing himself for his confession. “I’m afraid he’ll find out…that I love you.”</p>
<p>At first, I didn’t understand. That answer didn’t help me at all. I scrunched my eyebrows together. “What would happen if he knew you love—?” I put the pieces of the puzzle together in my mind. My eyes widened with terror. It was getting harder to breathe. He was afraid for <em>me</em>. “You’re afraid he’ll come after me, too?” I pressed my other hand to my chest.</p>
<p>He shook his head miserably, holding my hand a little tighter. “No…I’m <em>terrified</em> he’ll come after <em>just</em> you…<em>only</em> you…No doubt he wants me to suffer the way he had. He wants me to wonder whether you’re okay, whether you’re being treated right. I can’t allow that to happen, Rapunzel. I’d sooner die…err…again, than have to wonder if you’re hurt.” He closed his eyes. “You didn’t see the way I was when I wasn’t with you in that dungeon…I was a complete wreck! I couldn’t think straight.” He squeezed his eyes tighter, remembering ever little detail that happened that day. “My hands kept gripping onto the rusted bars to the window of my cell. I held on so tight that my hand started to bleed. Tears, Rapunzel, tears that I hadn’t shed in the Lord knows how long started to burn my eyes because I felt like I was trapped! I knew that you were gone, that you were being taken away from me by those godforsaken brothers! I had never felt so helpless, so useless…” He opened his eyes and looked at my face, as if trying to memorize it. “If you had seen the way I was you would see why I’m so scared.” Eugene tore his eyes away from me. He closed them again. His face twitched with the remembrance of the pain he endured when I was taken.</p>
<p>I coiled my arms around Eugene’s. I started to feel the dread he was going through. Although, I’d rather this man take me away than have him take Eugene. I couldn’t take seeing him going away again; I couldn’t bear the thought of losing him. Gothel made sure I knew what that was like, a feeling that will forever be perfectly preserved in the back of my mind no matter how much I try to erase it. I wasn’t going to let that feeling back, not now, not ever.</p>
<p>I got up and took Eugene’s face in my hands. Watching his eyes open up brought a flashback to when we were in the tower. I swallowed and smiled. “I understand,” I said as he reached out for me. “I’ll be careful, I promise. I’ll tell my parents of this first thing in the morning. That way you know I’ll be safe. Okay?”</p>
<p>His face seemed to relax. His fingers traced the outline of my face. “I love you so much, Rapunzel.” He breathed.</p>
<p>I laughed as I let my hands get tangled in his hair. “I love you, too, Eugene. I always will.”</p>
<p>He smiled beautifully. “Now ‘til forever.”</p>
<p>He leaned in. I leaned in. Our lips met in the middle. It was a short kiss. Rushed. The guards were still waiting outside for him. I pulled away. Eugene didn’t seem too happy about that, he wanted us to kiss longer. But I couldn’t. He needed his rest. “Go to sleep.” I said, nudging him with my elbow.</p>
<p>Eugene reached for me and grumbled. “Yeah, you too.”</p>
<p>He kissed my forehead. He opened the door to leave. Before he was gone, he turned around one last time, this time wearing a smile. “I’ll be dreaming of you.”</p>
<p>I giggled and played with my hands. “And I’ll be dreaming of you.”</p>
<p>With that being said he turned to the guards and chimed, “Well, boys, I’m off to bed! Unless you want to see me sleeping, I’d suggest you get some rest too.”</p>
<p>I rolled my eyes, “Eugene!”</p>
<p>I heard him laugh as he closed the door. “I know, I know,” then I heard the sound of the guards walking behind him as he left to his room.      <br/><br/></p>
<p>……………………..</p>
<p> </p>
<p>I had been tossing and turning all night. Only nightmares came to greet me when I slept. Images of Eugene gone were too painful. Each time I tried to sleep, pain came to hurt me. The first nightmare was of Gothel coming back into my life, taking Eugene away from me again. She was taking him to the gallows. His hands were bound behind him and a rope was wrapped tightly around his neck, burning his skin. When I tried to save him, Gothel only pushed me aside and said, “Mother knows best!” Tugging him harder and laughing the whole way to the noose. The second was of the Stabbington Brothers taking Eugene away, killing him in front of me with their vicious swords. They just kept stabbing him and stabbing him, injecting their blades into parts of his body that they knew wouldn’t kill him, not quickly at least. The third nightmare was the worst. It was just of Eugene leaving. He just left. That was the most painful of them all. Nothing I said made him stay. He made the decision on his own, this time convinced that Marcus was only coming for him. He said that he couldn’t put me in danger. He had to leave. Forever. That was the time I woke up sobbing. I shoved my face into my pillow, trying desperately to shake loose the images that tormented me.</p>
<p> I eventually just decided to stay up. I would have been getting up in a couple of hours anyway. I took that time to just be alone. The quiet let me hear every thought that surfaced on my mind. Some were pleasant, some were petrifying. I draped a blanket over my shoulders and headed off to my balcony. A summer breeze tugged at the jagged ends of my hair that refused to grow. I didn’t mind. My long blonde hair held me to Gothel and my life in that tower. My short brown hair was there to let me start my life again, outside that tower, rid of Gothel, and forever with Eugene. At least that’s the way I wanted it to be. It had to be.</p>
<p>            An early bird fluttered by the balcony. It was singing a cheerful tune. I longed for the feeling to sing, but I couldn’t. I was too afraid, too anxious about Eugene. He was probably still sleeping, dreaming. I started to imagine the way he’d look. His hands would be under his pillow, supporting his head. His hair would be unkempt. His chest would be moving slowly up and down. He would be breathing at a steady pace, unless he was having a bad dream, which would be possible after all that had happened today. I chose to focus on a picture of him smiling. I closed my eyes and let the picture become all that I could see. A wave of ease washed over me.</p>
<p>            For a brief moment, everything felt the way it had before, but moments are meant to be replaced with other moments. That moment switched places with one that could have killed Eugene. It started when I opened my eyes. The sun and moon had almost completely swapped places when a bag was dropped over my head. I struggled. I punched and kicked. I felt my body being lifted into the air and fall on something large. I was being taken away again. I couldn’t let that happen, not after my promise to Eugene. I gulped for oxygen and forced my lungs to belt out a scream that would wake up the whole kingdom. It didn’t last long. Something clubbed the back of my head. Everything went black.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>………………….</p>
<p> </p>
<p>            My eyes opened weakly. The back of my head throbbed. My wrists were bound behind me and my ankles were tied together with itchy rope. I was laying on a cold, rocky surface. I managed to sit up, realizing that I was in a cave.</p>
<p>“Did you have a nice nap, <em>Princess</em>?” A voice like knives called.</p>
<p>            I spun around, falling back to my side. “Ouch!” I scrapped my elbow on a rock.</p>
<p>            I looked up with contempt into the eyes of my kidnapper. His eyes were filled with amusement. He was a very built man with fiery hair. Scars were sliced all over his face and arms as were his legs, I’m sure. I watched the man as he stalked his way over to me. He squatted near my feet. His eyes seemed to be laughing at me. I knew who this man was. I knew what he was doing. I knew what he wanted. “You’re wasting your time.” I spat. “The man you’re looking for won’t come.” I stated coldly.</p>
<p>            Marcus snorted at my remark. He wrapped his meaty fingers around my arm and drew my head to his face. “Yes, he will.” His breath smelled horrible. I gagged as he pulled me closer.</p>
<p>            “Let go of me!” I ordered, smacking his arm with my shoulder.</p>
<p>            Of course, he didn’t listen. “Huh, right.” A vicious smirk smeared his face. “Let’s see what Rider’s gotten himself into.” He took his other hand and pressed it against my neck, pushing me even closer to his face, to his lips. I would sooner drop dead than kiss this man—or any man, for that matter—that wasn’t Eugene, my Eugene. I shook my head as his lips came closer. Before I knew it, his lips violently pressed into mine. I felt his tongue, his grotesque tongue try to penetrate itself into my mouth. Almost vomiting, I opened my mouth and bit down as hard as I could. Marcus pulled away, ripping his bleeding tongue out from my teeth.</p>
<p>            He cursed, throwing me to the ground. Angrily, he wiped the blood with his sleeve. “Okay, I can see why he wouldn’t come for you.” He stood up and walked to the mouth of the cave. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he was throwing a party right now for your disappearance.”</p>
<p>            I blocked out his words as I tried to scrub that man’s essence off of my mouth with my dress. “You don’t know <em>anything</em> about the man I love.”</p>
<p>            Marcus turned around and chuckled, his tongue still bleeding. “I know enough.”</p>
<p>           </p>
<p>………………..</p>
<p> </p>
<p>            Night came and went. I didn’t sleep. Marcus’s snoring kept me up. Not that I would have slept if he hadn’t. I was tired, cold, and wet, drenched in my sweat. I kept telling myself that no matter what Marcus did to me I would be okay, knowing that Eugene wasn’t here in my place. My arms were sore, being held in the position that they had been in all day, but at least he didn’t try touching me again. Instead, Marcus had kept me in the shadows, mocking me in my seemingly pathetic state. He talked about what a horrible princess I was. He taunted me, telling me how he was planning to kill the infamous Flynn Rider. He told me over and over again until he brought tears to my eyes and had me begging on my stomach to make him stop. Marcus merely laughed at my pathetic pleas and spit on my dress.</p>
<p>            My stomach began to growl like a savage dog. The brother walked over, flinging around a small steaming pot. It smelled so good. “Morning,” he grinned cruelly. He followed my eyes. His grin grew. “Hazelnut soup,” Marcus stated, swinging it in front of me.</p>
<p>            I sat up straight, doing my best not to give him the satisfaction he was looking for. I turned my body so the fumes of the soup wouldn’t get to me. He knew that I was starving. I didn’t eat the food he made the day before and I wasn’t going to eat the food he made today. I wasn’t going to digest anything that man made.</p>
<p>            “Aren’t you hungry, <em>Princess</em>?” He sneered.</p>
<p>            I didn’t answer his question. “What are you going to do to me?”</p>
<p>            Marcus laughter echoed through the cave, ringing in my ears. “Oh, you don’t want to know.” I heard him drop the pot down on the ground. His footsteps came closer and closer to me. Before I could react, he plopped a hand down on my shoulder and spun me around. “Do you love him?”</p>
<p>            “More than life.” I snarled, bouncing my shoulder, trying to get his hand off me.</p>
<p>            This only made him clamp down harder.</p>
<p>I grunted.</p>
<p>“Does he love you?”</p>
<p>            I shook my body furiously, this time succeeding getting him off. “Of course he does! He died for me.”</p>
<p>            Marcus chortled at my response. “But not enough to come rescue his fiancé from the big bad man?”</p>
<p>            My eyebrows knitted themselves in the center of my forehead. I was about to reply, but then I realized I couldn’t. I choked on reality. Eugene <em>was</em> going to come for me. He had to. He was Eugene Fitzherbert, the man I loved. He died for me, and he’d die again. He’d come looking for me. He’d find me. He’d die rescuing me, the woman he loves.</p>
<p>            “That’s what I thought.” Marcus chuckled and walked back over to the soup and began to slurp it all down. When he was finally finished, he brought out a jug of water and chugged it down, some spilling over down his neck.</p>
<p>            My throat burned for water. My stomach begged for food. I didn’t know how long I was going to be there. I didn’t know how long Marcus was going to keep me alive. All I knew was that I had to see Eugene again. I had to.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>………………..</p>
<p> </p>
<p>            Three days passed by. Marcus had untied me the second day before he went to sleep. I foolishly tried to escape and run back to my castle, to my Eugene, but Marcus got to me before I could get ten feet out of the cave. He then tied me up again, after smacking me around. I had a bruised face and limbs, and a bloody chin and lip. He didn’t let me eat or drink, but I managed to get enough water from the back of the cave. I was still very weak, but kept myself strong with a flawless picture of Eugene in my head.</p>
<p>            Night was coming. It was almost there again when a pebble shot through the cave and whacked Marcus. “Hey!” He rubbed the tender spot where the pebble had landed. Then a mean smile stretched across his face. “Rider!”</p>
<p>            I jumped to my feet. I had to see if it was really him. <em>It is him!</em> A voice in my head shouted with glee.</p>
<p>            I hopped my way over to the mouth of the cave, but Marcus merely pushed me down. I yelped.</p>
<p>            Marcus took out two long swords. Then I remembered how Marcus said he was going to kill Flynn. “No!” I screamed.</p>
<p>            “Too late, Princess,” The man mocked. “Rider!” </p>
<p>            “Rapunzel?” Eugene’s beautiful voice danced in my ears, oh how I missed his voice.</p>
<p>            “RUN!” I ordered, fighting the urge to wrap my arms around him.</p>
<p>            “I’m coming!” He hollered, disobeying my orders.</p>
<p>            “Finally!” Marcus raced over to me and grabbed me by my short hair, pulling me to my feet. I screeched, desperately trying to escape his iron grip. “I will have my revenge.” As Eugene’s footsteps came to the cave, closer to us, Marcus retold the story of how he was going to kill Flynn Rider. “I’m going to chop gashes into his body, making his blood splatter these walls and your face.” I shook my head violently. “I’m going to grab you and hurt you again and again, driving Rider crazy. He’ll try his best to keep me away from you, but he won’t succeed while he watches my hands claim every inch of your body.” He held on tighter as tears streamed down my face. “As he tries to stop me, I’ll punch and kick his wounds, causing him to feel an agony like no other.” I tried to fight him, make him stop telling me his plan, but I couldn’t. “Then, when he thinks I’m going to kill him, I’ll kill <em>you</em> instead, right before his eyes. I’ll beat him, I’ll beat him until I’ve decided I’ve had enough. And then, when he knows he is at my mercy, when his body is too limp to try to defend himself anymore, when he is so close to death that the gates to <em>hell</em> are beckoning his name, I’ll stop. I’ll leave him here. Guards will come and save him. He’ll rest and be healed, and he’ll live on with the memory of <em>your</em> blood on his hands. He’ll know it was <em>his</em> fault.” Tears were cascading down my cheeks. I could picture everything he was saying, and it was tearing me apart. “He’ll die wishing he had <em>never</em> messed around with my brothers!”</p>
<p>            “Rapunzel, I’m here!” Eugene ran into the cave. Sweat was dripping down the sides of his face. He must have been searching for me like a mad man…just like I would have for him. Once our eyes met, his face became distorted with misery. Then he switched his focus to Marcus. Rage took form on his cheeks, eyes, and nose. “What have you done to her?” He growled viciously.</p>
<p>            Marcus chuckled. “I’ll show you,” he pulled me in and smashed his lips against mine, rubbing them against my teeth.</p>
<p>            I opened my mouth and clamped down with all my might. I spit his lips out and almost threw up again—You’d think he’d have learned from the first time. “Don’t let him get to you, Eugene, please!”</p>
<p>            Marcus threw me to the ground again, taking his swords once more. “You’re going to pay!”</p>
<p>            I couldn’t let him hurt Eugene. I couldn’t! Seeing him so close to me, knowing that Marcus was capable of doing everything he said he would do, was killing me. “Marcus!”</p>
<p>            The man wouldn’t listen to me. “Come here, Rider! I have a few things I want to give you!”</p>
<p>            Eugene, my love, raced over to Marcus, more than eager to fight him. He took out my frying pan. I almost cried I was so happy to see him with it. A rush of memories came to me. Then reality came back, and I cried harder. I almost puked because of how terrified I was of losing the love of my life. I wasn’t going to get slack this time like I had with Gothel. She had a reason to listen to me. Marcus? He had no reason. “Eugene, please just run!”</p>
<p>            “NO!” Eugene smacked the frying pan into Marcus’s swords. I had never seen him this angry before. “I’m not going to lose you, Rapunzel! I’m not!”</p>
<p>            The fight went on and on. Marcus stabbed Eugene in his arm, but Eugene pushed the pain aside. He flung the frying pan into Marcus’s body, causing the man to growl. I struggled in my restrains. I had to get out. I had to. I desperately tried to find something to cut the ropes. I hadn’t looked that hard to find something since I played hide-and-seek with Pascal in the tower. That’s when I found a sharp rock. I managed to fumble around with it enough to cut through my bindings. My limbs were even sorer than before, but I didn’t care, I was one step closer to getting my arms around the neck of the most wonderful person in my world.</p>
<p>            By this time Marcus had knocked the frying pan out of Eugene’s hands. Marcus just punched Eugene in the ribs. I could have sworn I heard one of them pop. The evil man picked up Eugene by his vest and chucked him to the ground as if he were nothing but a sack of potatoes. Eugene was on his back, trying to scramble back to his feet, cringing as he tried supporting himself with his stabbed arm and injured rib. Marcus laughed at his attempt. “It’s time to pay, Rider.”</p>
<p>            Unnoticed, I picked up the frying pan. I ran over to Marcus and bopped him in the back. He turned to face me. “His name is Eugene Fitzherbert!” I growled, banging the pan on his head, knocking him out instantly. Too much had happened at once. I was so dizzy from malnourishment; I collapsed, falling into the arms of my love.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>…………………..</p>
<p> </p>
<p>            When I woke up, I was in my bed, under the covers. Eugene was right next to me, on top of the covers. I was in the nook of his arm. He was so warm and smelled like soap. I yawned and winced in pain, still extremely sore. I managed to pull my arm out from the sheets and drape it over Eugene’s chest. He stirred awake. “Apples!” He said, as if answering a question.</p>
<p>            I giggled, feeling a little guilty for waking him up.</p>
<p>            Embarrassment showed in Eugene’s cheeks. “How long have you…umm…been up?”</p>
<p>            I nuzzled my head against him, never wanting to leave that spot, that moment. “Not very long,” I noticed his injured arm. “I’m so sorry, Eugene.”</p>
<p>            His eyes trailed to where I was looking. He coughed out a chuckle. “Small price to pay for the girl of my dreams.”</p>
<p>            I shook my head. That wasn’t true. “It’s too much. I should have listened to you before. You could have died! I should have…” I realized I would have been on a rant against myself if I hadn’t stopped.</p>
<p>            Eugene shifted his body so that he could see me a little better. I took that time to really get a good look at him. His dark hair, his comforting eyes, his strong neck, the way his clothes fit on his body, the way his smile could make a sun come out in a thunderstorm, and the way he held me, those were things that I would never be able to forget. I would always see him like this, even when we’d become old and gray and wrinkled, I’d see him just like that. Handsome. Gorgeous. Beautiful.</p>
<p>            Then I remembered about Marcus. I gasped. “What happened to—?”</p>
<p>            Eugene held up his injured arm. “He has been put in prison for life in a prison far, far, far away. So far away that he’ll never be able to find us again, along with his brothers. Turns out that they had been sending him messages about us. It was all their idea.”</p>
<p>            I smiled sweetly. “Oh, Eugene, I love you so much!” I wrapped my arm around his chest so that I could secure my fingers around his ribcage. Eugene shuddered and took a sharp gasp. I had forgotten about his rib. “I’m sorry,” I apologized, taking his arm and draping it around me. “Promise me you’ll never let me go?”</p>
<p>            Eugene and I had been through so much. He was my new dream. He was my everything, from the air I breathed to the beat of my heart. I loved him more than anything in the whole world.</p>
<p>            He chuckled again. “I promise.”</p>
<p>            I leaned my head against him. Soon, I would be his wife. That made me smile. I couldn’t wait. I wanted to get married right there and then. “Eugene,” I started. He grinned. “Can we get married right now?”</p>
<p>            Surprise took over his face. It was the good kind of surprise. His arm around me pulled me just the slightest bit closer. “Now?” He kissed my hair.</p>
<p>            I nodded. “Yes, right now…Can we?”</p>
<p>            Eugene laughed beautifully. “I don’t see why not?”</p>
<p>            I must have been beaming. My smile hurt my face it was so big. “Yay!” I sat up, forgetting how much my body still ached. I laced my fingers through Eugene’s and tugged him to his feet. I pulled him along with me as I had us race down the halls. I must have been sleeping for hours because the sun was high in the sky, indicating that it was noon. I knew my parents would be in the garden.</p>
<p>            When they saw me, they wrapped their arms around mine. Eugene stepped aside; I assumed he had already been given his hug when he returned. “Are you okay?” They both asked in unison.</p>
<p>            “I was afraid I was going to lose you again.” My father confessed.</p>
<p>            “I’m okay now,” I smiled. “I mean, I’m still a little sore, but I woke up in Eugene’s arms and—”</p>
<p>            Eugene shot me a look of panic. I forgot my parents didn’t know that sometimes he’d come into my room and we would just snuggle or sleep together…</p>
<p>            I coughed. “Don’t worry, nothing happened. He was just taking care of me.”</p>
<p>            I stopped to notice how they were taking the news. It didn’t seem like they cared too much at the moment to really say anything against it. They were just so happy to see me again. “Mother…Father…can Eugene and I get married…today?”</p>
<p>            The two exchanged concerned looks, but in the end my father said, “We’ll have to rearrange somethings, but I think we can make it work.”</p>
<p>            I squealed with happiness and wrapped my arms around Eugene’s neck. “We’re getting married! We’re getting married <em>today</em>!”</p>
<p>            Eugene laughed and held me tight against him, as if double checking that this was really happening to him. “We are.”           </p>
<p> </p>
<p>            My parents set up the wedding as soon as we left to get dressed. I was in a snow-white gown, wearing my tiara. Eugene wore his best attire with his hair combed. I giggled when I saw him. I wasn’t used to seeing him so dapper. They hired the preacher that christened me the day I was born. He was a nice man. His hair was gray now and he wore thick spectacles. He preformed the service beautifully. It was a simple wedding. My parents were there, as were Pascal, Maximus, and all the servants and guards.</p>
<p>            Finally, the moment I had waited for arrived. The preacher just asked Eugene if he would take me as his wife. “I do,” he stated, not taking his eyes off me for even a second. Then it came to me. I was jumping up and down with excitement. Tears, happy, pretty tears, were trickling down my cheeks.</p>
<p>            When it came time for me to speak, I shouted with joy, “I DO!”</p>
<p>            Everyone laughed as I blushed the hardest I ever had. “You may now kiss the bride.”</p>
<p>            Eugene took my face in his hands. His thumbs caressed my cheekbones. I couldn’t stand it any longer. I put my arms around his neck and pulled him in, still with my face in his hands. We kissed a kiss that would never be forgotten. It was the first kiss he gave his wife. It seemed like it could have lasted forever. I bet it could have if the trumpets didn’t start playing. Eugene scooped me up into his arms, grunting away the pain Marcus had given him, and ran down the aisle, taking me away, holding me, never letting go.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The End</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I hope you enjoyed the fic :) Please let me know your thoughts! Thank you for taking the time to read this :D</p></blockquote></div></div>
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